eBay is adding QR Codes scanning to its barcode scanning app RedLaser, which the company acquired from Occipital in June.
The app, which has has seen over five million downloads from the App Store (that’s 3 additional million downloads since June), looks up price comparisons in its product database by scanning the barcode of an product. QR Codes, which is short for Quick Response (because they can be read quickly by a mobile phone through its camera), are used to take a piece of information from a transitory media and put it in to your cell phone – this can be links, videos, text, photos and more.
With RedLaser’s QR Code integration, consumers can receive information such as links to videos, product reviews or websites to get more product information, contact information for customer support, or calendar appointments for upcoming sporting events and concerts The new app will also populate product results with eBay Marketplaces and Half.com listings.
While QR codes are popular amongst the geek set, the technology hasn’t yet become a mainstream way to identify products in U.S. stores (barcodes dominate this arena). In fact, I can’t remember that the last time I saw a QR code on a product at a store. But eBay claims that QR codes are popular in Asia and other parts of the world and are gaining traction in the U.S.